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3,587,835
Anna "Banana" Kruchten
HomeSmart Real Estate - Phoenix, AZ
602-380-4886

I have no idea of what these CA forms are about.  Please explain!

Jun 20, 2022 09:53 AM
Ambassador
1,452,669
Susan Emo
Sotheby's International Realty Canada - Brokerage - Kingston, ON
Kingston and the 1000 Islands Area

Interesting.  Up here there is not a Seller's lawyer that will allow them to complete same because they will be sued for any answer they give or do not give.  Buyer needs to complete their own due diligence and not rely upon a sellers knowledge or lack thereof.

Jun 21, 2022 05:49 AM
Ambassador
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Fred Griffin Florida Real Estate
Fred Griffin Real Estate - Tallahassee, FL
Licensed Florida Real Estate Broker

Seller's Property Disclosure is common (but not required) in Florida.  It's important that the Seller disclose any known latent defects. 

   Two major Court Cases in Florida destroyed "Caveat Emptor".  Sellers must tell all!

 

   TDS?  Can you post an image or a snippet?  TIA.

Jun 20, 2022 02:03 PM
Ambassador
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Kathleen Daniels, Probate & Trust Specialist
KD Realty - 408.972.1822 - San Jose, CA
Probate Real Estate Services

100% agree. I review both with my client looking for consistency and/or discrepancies. We discuss, get it right, then the seller corrects.

However, it is not just those two documents. Real estate agents can cause their clients to "lose" because of errors in the contracts!  

Jun 20, 2022 10:13 AM
Ambassador
3,125,416
Wanda Kubat-Nerdin - Wanda Can!
Red Rock Real Estate (435) 632-9374 - St. George, UT
St. George Utah Area Residential Sales Agent

Not sure what they are. Perhaps spelling them out will help those of us who practice in other states, Richie.

Jun 20, 2022 09:43 AM
Rainmaker
1,502,998
Ryan Huggins - Thousand Oaks, CA
https://HugginsHomes.com - Thousand Oaks, CA
Residential Real Estate and Investment Properties

Yes.  These are very important forms.

Jun 20, 2022 08:47 AM
Rainmaker
901,513
Carla Freund
Keller Williams Preferred Realty - Raleigh, NC
NC Real Estate Transition & Relocation 919-602-848

We don't have a TDS here. We do have s seller disclosure. Seller's can market "no representation" on any and all questions. Of course, attorneys here say it is difficult to prove sellers knew of issues. When I work with sellers, I tell them to complete it the best they can and if they aren't certain of the answer to mark no representation. For example, most sellers don't know what their pipes are made of. In my experience, the sellers I work with do their best to be honest on those forms. 

Jun 21, 2022 06:08 AM
Rainmaker
5,216,370
Wayne Martin
Wayne M Martin - Chicago, IL
Real Estate Broker - Retired

Per comments by Kathleen Daniels, Probate & Trust Specialist, most states have similar forms and they have become more common and more detailed since the 90's. As an agent insist your sellers fill them out and not you! 

Jun 21, 2022 04:49 AM
Rainmaker
763,783
Tony Lewis
Summit Real Estate Group - Valencia, CA
Summit Real Estate Group Valencia & Aliso Viejo

These two forms along with a physical inspection are of utmost importance to be performed properly.  Anyone can sue for any reason so the best we can do is make sure we are careful when guiding our clients.

Jun 20, 2022 03:19 PM
Rainmaker
131,374
Philip A. Raices
Turn Key Real Estate - Great Neck, NY
1 of the Most Knowledgeable Brokers on the Net!

As a Broker for 28 years in NYS the PDQ is the only form that I am aware of and I always  suggest that it be filled out as carefully and accurately as possible, otherwise if not filled out, the  penalty is $500 paid to the purchaser at closing.  However, this does not exempt the seller from being sued later on if they have willfully hid a defect in their home or even if they never filled out the form and it was proved beyond a shadow of a doubt by the purchaser's attorney that the seller didn't fill out the disclosure because they knew there was a defect.  My experience is that their attorneys prefer that they don't fill out the form, maybe due to  the seller exposing themselves to a lawsuit that they don't want to be part of as that may not be the expertise in a court of law or potentially  losing their sale due to the seller explaining what is wrong with their home.  I also think that their attorneys prefer that they don't fill out the form,  but not being cognizant of totally realizing the exposure of the seller possibly getting sued later on down the line years later  on and for today it's the path of least resistance.  The buyer has to prove that the seller willfully held back pertinent and critical and crucial information that they knew there were those specific defects in their home prior going and entering into contract that would have effected the selling price.  More important, when a seller fills out the PDQ, I believe that they are reducing their exposure if and when there is a lawsuit; because, as a Broker, if I were a judge I think my professional opinion would be that the seller did their best to complete the form accurately and honestly, assuming that they didn't hide any material defect that they were aware of.  (I am not an attorney and do not offer legal advice, just my opinion)  However, 99% of the time the buyer  orders an inspection (unless they wave their inspection, which has happened more times the last 2 years in Long Island, just so the buyer beats out all the other purchasers and goes right to contract) to determine what is wrong and right with  the prospective home, prior to signing their contract.  So the fact that the purchaser is hiring an inspect/P.E. to hopefully ascertain these issues and if there are any major defects, the buyer can re-negotiate the agreed upon price, assuming the seller agrees to doing so.  I believe this in many ways should reduce the liability of the seller as now the buyer has done their due diligence about finding out the physical condition of the home and property.  However, I always recommend that a seller do a pre-inspection if their home is 20 years or older to see if there are any material defects or problems with their property or structure and that they will then have the opportunity and time to fix and repair those issues prior to putting their home on the market (I always suggest hiring a P.E. and not just a regular home inspector), thereby reducing their future liability in the event of a lawsuit. So in some situations  it's "Caveat Venditor" if a seller hides any defects in their home and thinks that they are exempt from being sued later on, possibly years later, they are misinformed!

Jun 23, 2022 04:32 AM